News in brief

Rising costs force closure of five pubs a day

An average of five pubs a day are closing as publicans struggle to make a living, amid dwindling custom and rising food, fuel and labour costs. Closure rates rose by a third for the first six months compared with last year, says the British Beer and Pub Association. Other studies show beer sales, the core of the trade, are down by almost 10% on last year, hit by cheaper supermarket offers. Punch, Britain's biggest landlord, is offering leases on almost 18% of the group's 7,560 sites. But according to the association's data, more than half of the pubs shutting down were owned by individual publicans. Simon Bowers

Police claim success for town's curfew zone

A controversial curfew keeping youngsters off the streets of a Cornish town at night finished yesterday with police claiming it had helped cut crime by 15%. Operation Goodnight, in place since July 25 to tackle antisocial behaviour around the Close Hill estate in Redruth, required children under 16 to be home by 9pm and the under-10s by 8pm. The scheme worried civil liberties campaigners but the police said that during the curfew there were 106 crimes, a fall of 15% compared with the same period last year. Mark Griffin, the officer who ran the curfew, said there had also been a fall in juvenile victims of crime. Steven Morris

Man arrested after couple found dead on canal boat

A man has been arrested after a couple were found stabbed to death on a narrowboat on the Grand Union Canal. The bodies of a man, 53, and a woman, 39, were discovered at Stoke Hammond, near Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, early yesterday morning. The victims were said to be well known in the area. Both were pronounced dead at the scene at about 1am. The towpath was taped off as forensic science officers gathered evidence. The arrested man was being questioned by detectives at Milton Keynes police station and postmortems will be carried out today. Damien Francis

DNA 'may help solve' Julie Ward murder

The father of a British tourist murdered on safari in Kenya 20 years ago said yesterday that he believes the crime is solvable. Julie Ward, who was 28, was last seen alive 20 years ago yesterday. She was murdered while on a trip to the Masai Mara game reserve. The case was hampered by poor investigation and led to a damning report by Jon Stoddart, now chief constable of Durham, stating that the inquiry was "hopelessly flawed". But her father, John Ward, believes that fresh DNA evidence and a renewed police inquiry could yield results. He said: "This crime is imminently solvable and I believe it is." Press Association

Panel of business leaders to advise London mayor

London mayor Boris Johnson yesterday announced the establishment of a panel of 47 business leaders to advise him on securing the capital's position as a top global city. The International Business Advisory Council for London will be chaired by Sir Martin Sorrell, chief executive of advertisers WPP, and has a membership of CEOs including Willie Walsh of British Airways, Stuart Rose of Marks & Spencer and Renault's Carlos Ghosn. The council, which meets for the first time on October 5, will advise the mayor on developing ideas to make London an appealing place for companies and their workers. Press Association

Reserved welcome for simplified train tickets

Passenger groups cautiously welcomed the second stage of a simpler train ticketing system which came into force yesterday. Tickets for on-the-day travel are now split into two categories, "anytime" and "off-peak". The move follows the first phase in May, when "advanced" tickets for single train journeys replaced a range of options. The Association of Train Operating Companies said the three new categories, together with season tickets, would account for 99% of rail tickets. Jason Torrance, of the Campaign for Better Transport, said: "We welcome the changes but the fares still need to be reduced." Press Association

Avoid meat to curb global warming, says UN expert

Britons should reduce meat consumption to save the environment, a world authority on climate change said yesterday. Dr Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, called on families to stop eating meat for at least one day a week. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of greenhouse gas emissions. "A study from the University of Chicago showed that if Americans were to reduce meat consumption by 20% it would be as if they switched from a standard sedan to the ultra-efficient Prius," Pachauri said. Press Association